Henry Marshall Erskine Evans (August 17, 1876 – September 20, 1973) was a politician in

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, Canada, and a mayor of

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

Biography

Harry Evans was born on August 17, 1876, in Davenport,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, now part of

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, the son of Rev. J. S. Evans and Mary Jane Evans (née Vaux). He was educated in

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

before earning a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

from the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

in 1897. After graduating, he attended the Michigan School of Mines in

Houghton, Michigan Houghton (; ) is the largest city and seat of government of Houghton County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Located on the Keweenaw Peninsula, Houghton is the largest city in the Copper Country region. It is the fifth-largest city in the Uppe ...

. He mined in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

for fifteen months before moving to

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

where he was Business Manager for the

Winnipeg Telegram The ''Winnipeg Telegram'' was a daily newspaper in Winnipeg, Manitoba which was published from June 9, 1898, to October 16, 1920. The paper originated as the ''Daily Nor'Wester'', which was founded in 1894 by William Luxton who also founded the W ...

(which had been founded by his brother

William Sanford Evans William Sanford Evans (December 18, 1869 – June 27, 1949) was a Manitoba politician. Between 1933 and 1936, he was the leader of that province's Conservative Party caucus. Evans was born in Spencerville, Ontario, the son of Rev. J.S. Ev ...

, who went on to become mayor of Winnipeg and leader of the

Conservative Party of Manitoba The Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba (french: Parti progressiste-conservateur du Manitoba) is a centre-right political party in Manitoba, Canada. It is currently the governing party in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba, after winnin ...

) from 1900 until 1904. After leaving the telegram, he worked for the Manitoba Land & Investment Company for two years. Evans moved to Alberta in 1906 to prospect coal seams on the

Pembina River Pembina River may refer to: *Pembina River (Alberta), a river in central Alberta, Canada *Pembina River (Manitoba – North Dakota) The Pembina River is a tributary of the Red River of the North, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. Nationa ...

. He moved to Edmonton the following year and managed the Pembina Coal Co. until 1908. He was the Canadian manager of a financial house in

London, England London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major s ...

, until it went bankrupt in 1912, when he founded the H. M. E. Evans Company, Ltd., which dealt in bonds, insurance, and real estate. In 1910, he married Edith Isabel Gifford Jackson, with whom he had one son and four daughters. He was elected mayor in the 1917 municipal election, finishing first in a five candidate field. He did not seek re-election at the expiration of his one-year term. Immediately before his term as mayor, he was president of the Edmonton Board of Trade. In 1925, he was appointed chairman of the Alberta Coal Commission. He served as a financial advisor to the Government of Alberta from 1931 until 1937. He was admitted to the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

on July 2, 1946, for meritorious service in war work. Evans was involved with the Edmonton

Rotary Club Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, profe ...

, the Manitoba Club, the Edmonton Board of Public Welfare, the Anglican Church, and the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

. Harry Marshall Erskine Evans died in Edmonton September 20, 1973.

Evansburg, Alberta Evansburg is a hamlet in west-central Alberta, Canada, within Yellowhead County. It is located on Highway 16A, approximately west of Edmonton and east of Edson. The hamlet is adjacent to the Pembina River and the Pembina River Provincial Par ...

, which he founded, and

Evansdale, Edmonton Evansdale is a neighbourhood in northeast Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It and the Northmount neighbourhood to the south comprise Edmonton's Dickinsfield community. Evansdale is bounded by the Griesbach neighbourhood across 97 Street to the west, ...

, a neighbourhood, are named in his honour. Notably, Evans's brother

served as mayor of Winnipeg and leader of the Manitoba Conservative Party, and his nephew

Gurney Evans Edward Gurney Vaux Evans (September 3, 1907 – January 8, 1987) was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He was a Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1953 to 1969, and served as a cabinet minister in the ...

was Minister of Finance amongst other portfolios in Manitoba. Evans's daughter Sylvia Evans was amongst the few women who served in the Royal Canadian Air Force during World War II.

Notes

References

Edmonton Public Library Biography of Harry Evans

City of Edmonton biography of Harry Evans
{{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Harry 1876 births 1973 deaths Politicians from Toronto Canadian Anglicans Canadian prospectors Mayors of Edmonton Members of the Order of the British Empire Michigan Technological University alumni University of Toronto alumni 20th-century Canadian politicians